Female conductor 'hounded out' of male voice choir after adding Westlife to programme

A woman musician who rose to the top in a man's world has claimed that she has been hounded out of her job.

Sian Pearce was the first female conductor in the 70-year history of one of Britain's best-known male voice choirs.

But she has laid down the baton after three years, saying she has been the target of a whispering campaign in the ranks of the Morriston Orpheus Male Voice chair.

She said: "There is only so much pressure you can take - it has been a case of snide comments, under-handedness and a campaign of rumours since the day I started.

"I feel I have been hounded out of the job I love. It is a horrible situation."

The Morriston Orpheus, based in Swansea, is one of the most famous Welsh male voice choirs, performing around the world.

The singers have just returned from a sell-out tour of Australia and New Zealand where they performed at the Sydney Opera House.

Vice-presidents of the choir include Lord Heseltine, Alan Titchmarsh and Peter Hain.

When Miss Pearce, 46, joined the 123-strong Morriston Orpheus as musical director she described it as a 'dream come true' and said it demonstrated the changing face of male voice choirs.

She tried to broaden the appeal of the choir for younger people by including more up-to-date songs alongside the traditional hymns.

She introduced the Queen classic Bohemian Rhapsody and the Westlife hit You Lift Me Up into the concert programme.

Her resignation came as she made allegations of a campaign to oust her by some choir members who did not want to be led by a woman.

Some were plotting to leave to form a breakaway male-only choir.

Miss Pearce said: "I would have loved to have resolved it but nobody was prepared to stand up and say anything openly.

"In the end I feel I have been forced out by a small minority of members."

In her resignation letter Miss Pearce said that she could not stand by and see the choir she loved being torn apart by continual fighting.

She wrote that individuals' mental and physical health was being put in jeopardy.

Miss Pearce said: "Some people have been reluctant for the choir to change, to move forward.

"And some people did not like the fact that a woman was leading the choir - that was a real problem for a minority of members.

"I have loved the Morriston Orpheus since I was a small child and to conduct them has been absolutely fantastic.

"The overwhelming majority of members have been wonderful, very supportive."

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Barrie Davies, chairman of the choir, refused to comment on the resignation. He said: "We may want to make a formal statement at a later date, but I do not want to comment on the situation at the moment."

But one singer said: "She didn't understand the traditions and didn't fit in with everyone.

"It's not a matter of her gender - it's a matter of what's right for the choir."